California Pulse


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    Why This GC Came Out Of Retirement To Rejoin SoFi

    Sixteen years at Sallie Mae. Twelve years at SoFi Technologies Inc. Rob Lavet is a dedicated in-house lawyer — so much that he returned this month to his most recent employer after retiring from the online lender and finance platform in 2024.

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    Law360's Legal Lions Of The Week

    Kellogg Hansen Todd Figel & Frederick PLLC leads this week's edition of Law360 Legal Lions, after a D.C. Circuit panel revived a lawsuit that accuses pharmaceutical companies of aiding a Hezbollah-linked militia's terrorism in Iraq.

  • Berkeley Law Offers Training Program On Privacy And AI

    The University of California, Berkeley School of Law announced this week the launch of the Chief Privacy Officer Program, a new advanced online training program for senior leaders on privacy law and artificial intelligence governance.

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    Goodwin COO O'Carroll To Exit After Less Than 2 Years

    Former Google legal operations leader Mary Shen O'Carroll is planning to leave Goodwin Procter LLP less than two years after she joined the law firm as its chief operating officer, O'Carroll has announced in a LinkedIn post.

  • Voir Dire: Law360 Pulse's Weekly Quiz

    The legal industry marked the end of January with insight into law firm performance and news of a Hollywood adaptation. Test your legal news savvy here with Law360 Pulse's weekly quiz.

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    Lathrop GPM Knows The Way To New Digs In San Jose

    As Lathrop GPM LLP continues its expansion in California, the firm announced that its San Jose office will move to a new location in West San Jose by the end of the year.

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    Partners OK Winston & Strawn, Taylor Wessing Merger

    Winston & Strawn LLP and Taylor Wessing UK said Friday that the partners of both firms had voted "decisively" in favor of a tie‑up worth more than $1.75 billion in annual revenue, paving the way for another transatlantic law firm merger.

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    Glancy Prongay Honors Litigation Pros In Masthead Change

    Plaintiffs' class action law firm Glancy Prongay & Murray LLP announced Thursday it has changed its name to Glancy Prongay Wolke & Rotter LLP to reflect the contributions of two longtime firm partners.

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    Dinsmore Unveils New Visual Identity For Its Next Chapter

    After 118 years in business, Dinsmore & Shohl LLP has launched a new, art deco-inspired logo and a revamped, user-friendly website.

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    Law Firm Real Estate Report

    A handful of law firms including Lathrop GPM LLP, Withers and Clark Hill PLC, started the new year either resolving to move teams to new offices or completing office moves with the opening of new locations.

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    From TikTok To The Courtroom, The Rise Of Lawfluencers

    A growing group of legal influencers with huge followings say social media use is helping them expand their practices along with their brands and offering marketing lessons that even BigLaw can learn from.

  • Jeffer Mangels Picks New Vice Chair For Hospitality Team

    Jeffer Mangels Butler & Mitchell LLP has picked its cybersecurity and privacy group co-chair to serve as the new vice chair for its global hospitality team, which currently employs more than 40 attorneys, the firm announced Monday.

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    Crowell & Moring Adds Tech Firm IP Atty In Southern Calif.

    Crowell & Moring LLP is expanding its California team, bringing in an intellectual property attorney most recently with biotechnology firm Grail as a partner in its Orange County office in Irvine.

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    ArentFox Schiff Launches Longevity Industry Group

    ArentFox Schiff LLP on Wednesday announced the launch of a group geared toward advising companies focused on advancing wellness, preventive health care and the longevity of life.

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    Firm Revenue Up 12.6% As Billing Rates, Demand Grew In '25

    Increased billing rates and strong demand helped drive another financially successful year for the U.S. legal industry in 2025, according to survey results released Wednesday.

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    Smith Currie Taps Construction Law Vet As New Leader

    Smith Currie Oles LLP announced a new managing partner this week, with a Seattle-based partner who joined as part of a 2023 merger stepping into the role.

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    Law Firms Merged At Record Rates In 2025 Amid Talent War

    A record 59 law firm combinations were completed in 2025, 21 of which involved the largest 200 firms by revenue, according to statistics released by SurePoint Legal Insights, formerly Leopard Solutions, on Tuesday.

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    How Associates Can Financially Prep For Equity Partnership

    The transition from steady pay as an associate to dealing with the financial nuances of being an equity partner calls for great diligence in how young attorneys manage their finances.

  • Jocelyn Shih, Ryan Oringer and Jessica Valenzuela

    Gibson Dunn Mentor Program Sets Up Attys For Success

    January is National Mentoring Month. Law360 heard from attorneys who are in Gibson Dunn & Crutcher LLP’s firmwide mentorship program about its top benefits.

  • SEC Blunts Some Shareholder Activists With Policy Reversal

    The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has reversed course on allowing shareholders with less than $5 million in holdings to publicize information about their proxy ballot proposals through the agency, saying it will object to such voluntary submissions going forward.

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    Kelley Drye Adds Ex-23andMe, Facebook Privacy Pros

    Kelley Drye & Warren LLP said Monday it is boosting its privacy and information security practice with the addition of a former 23andMe attorney in California and a former Facebook attorney in Texas.

  • Law360 Seeks Members For Its 2026 Editorial Boards

    Law360 is looking for avid readers of our publications to serve as members of our 2026 editorial advisory boards.

  • Marilyn Monroe Homeowners Sue LA Again Over Landmarking

    Owners of a home where Marilyn Monroe died sued Los Angeles officials for the second time Friday, alleging in California federal court that designating the property a historic cultural monument prevented them from demolishing the decaying building they still must pay taxes on, which amounts to an unconstitutional government taking without just compensation.

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    Vedder Price Shortens Name In Rebranding Effort

    Chicago-based law firm Vedder Price PC will now go by the name Vedder and has debuted a new website in an effort to better serve clients and employees.

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    Fox Rothschild Updates Leadership Team With Eye On Future

    Both the managing partner and chair of Fox Rothschild LLP will start new terms in those positions in the spring, when a firm co-chair will join the leadership team to prepare for a possible transition to serving the role independently.

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Expert Analysis

  • Series

    Ask A Mentor: How Can Law Students Build Real-World Skills? Author Photo

    Allison Coffin at Akin Gump discusses how summer associates going back to school can continue to develop real-world lawyering skills by leveraging the numerous law school resources that support professional development both inside and outside the classroom.

  • How Firm Leaders Can Build And Sustain Culture Author Photo

    In uncertain and challenging times, law firm leaders can build and sustain culture by focusing attention on mission, values and leadership development, and applying a growth mindset across their firms, says Scott Westfahl at Harvard Law.

  • The Case That Showed Me The Value Of E-Discovery Plans Author Photo

    Robert Keeling at Sidley reflects on leading discovery in the litigation that followed the historic $85 billion AT&T-Time Warner merger and how the case highlighted the importance of having a strategic e-discovery plan in place.

  • Opinion

    CLE Accreditation Should Be Tied To Learning Outcomes Author Photo

    Given the substantial time and money lawyers put toward mandatory continuing legal education, CLE regulators and providers should be held to accreditation standards that assess learning outcomes, similar to those imposed on law schools and continuing medical education providers, says Rima Sirota at Georgetown Law.

  • Why You Should Leverage AI For Privilege Review Author Photo

    While many lawyers still believe that a manual, document-by-document review is the best approach to privilege logging, certain artificial intelligence tools can bolster the traditional review process and make this aspect of electronic document review more efficient, more accurate and less costly, say Laura Riff and Michelle Six at Kirkland.

  • Persuading The Court With Visual Aids In Written Argument Author Photo

    Robert Dubose at Alexander Dubose describes several categories of visuals attorneys can use to make written arguments easier to understand or more persuasive, and provides tips for lawyers unused to working with anything but text.

  • BigLaw Vs. Mid-Law Summer Programs: The Pros And Cons Author Photo

    There are major differences between BigLaw and Mid-Law summer associate programs, and each approach can learn something from the other in terms of structure and scheduling, the on-the-job learning opportunities provided, and the social experiences offered, says Anna Tison at Brooks Pierce.

  • Series

    Ask A Mentor: How Do I Take Time Off? Author Photo

    David Kouba at Arnold & Porter discusses how attorneys can prioritize mental health leave and vacation despite work-related barriers to taking time off.

  • Law Firms Must Prioritize Mental Health In Internal Comms Author Photo

    The traditional structure of law firms, with their compartmentalization into silos, is an inherent challenge to mental wellness, so partners and senior lawyers should take steps to construct and disseminate internal action plans and encourage open dialogue, says Elizabeth Ortega at ECO Strategic Communications.

  • Our Current Approach To Trial Advocacy Training Is Lacking Author Photo

    The key to trial advocacy is persuasion, but current training programs focus almost entirely on technique, making it imperative that lawyers are taught to be effective storytellers and to connect with their audiences, says Chris Arledge at Ellis George.

  • How Women In Law Can Advance Toward Leadership Roles Author Photo

    Female attorneys in leadership roles inspire other women to pursue similar opportunities in a male-dominated field, and for those who aspire to lead, prioritizing collaboration, inclusivity and integrity is key, says Kim Yelkin at Foley & Lardner.

  • The Case That Took Me From Prosecutor To Defense Attorney Author Photo

    Former Assistant U.S. Attorney Moira Penza, now at Wilkinson Stekloff, recalls the challenges of her first case as a civil defense attorney — a multibillion-dollar multidistrict class action against Allergan — and the lessons she learned about building rapport in the courtroom and with co-counsel.

  • The Importance Of Legal Macroeconomics Education For Attys Author Photo

    Most legal professionals lack understanding of the macroeconomic trends unique to the legal industry, like the rising cost of law school and legal services, which contributes to an unfair and inaccessible justice system, so law school courses and continuing legal education requirements in this area are essential, says Bob Glaves at the Chicago Bar Foundation.

  • What ABA Student Well-Being Standards Mean For Law Firms Author Photo

    While the American Bar Association's recent amendments to its law school accreditation standards around student well-being could have gone further, legal industry employers have much to learn from the ABA's move and the well-being movement that continues to gain traction in law schools, says David Jaffe at the American University Washington College of Law.

  • Series

    Ask A Mentor: How Do I Build Rapport In New In-House Role? Author Photo

    Tim Parilla at LinkSquares explains how new in-house lawyers can start developing relationships with colleagues both within and outside their legal departments in order to expand their networks, build their brands and carve their paths to leadership positions.

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